PLANO, RICHARDSON - Any way you slice it, 13,000 jobs is substantial. That’s how many combined insurance industry positions are being created in Plano and Richardson by Boston-based Liberty Mutual and Illinois-based State Farm.

Both companies are in the process of moving major operations into North Texas.

So, why are big companies like State Farm and Liberty Mutual choosing North Texas?

That’s where the workforce is, according to Roger Meiners, chairman of the Department of Economics at the University of Texas at Arlington.